The export duty on oil from the Russian Federation may rise to a new record level of 130-133 dollars per tonne from 1 June 2005, Interfax-Ukraine reports. \n \nThis forecast was made on Tuesday, 19 April, by Oleksandr Sakovych, deputy head of the customs payments department of the Russian Ministry of Finance. \n \nFrom 1 April, the Russian leadership raised the export duty on oil to a record value of 102.6 dollars per tonne. During the two previous months - from 1 February 2005 - a duty of 83 per tonne was in effect; before that - from 1 December 2004 - at the level of 101 dollars per tonne. \n \nThe duty on oil exports from Russia is recalculated once every two months according to a formula based on two-month monitoring of the price of Russian oil on world markets. The duty to be set from 1 June will be determined on the basis of monitoring the price of Russian oil for March-April 2005. \n \nAccording to Oleksandr Sakovych, the average price of Russian oil based on the results of monitoring from 1 March to 18 April was 47.51 dollars per barrel, and if the duty were being set now, then as of today it would be exactly 136 dollars per tonne. \n \nHowever, taking into account the decline in oil prices that has occurred, it has been holding steadily at around 45 dollars per barrel for about ten calendar days. "If the price of 45 dollars per barrel, which has been steadily maintained for a decade, holds (until the end of April), then the duty rate will be about 133 dollars per tonne," Sakovych said. \n \nOn the other hand, according to him, in order for the duty from 1 June to turn out below 130 dollars per tonne, it is necessary for the average price over the remaining trading days of April to fall to 41.5 dollars per barrel, which raises doubts. \n \nIn the event of the establishment of the oil export duty at the level of 130-133 dollars per tonne, the new duty rate on light petroleum products will be about 100 dollars per tonne, on dark petroleum products (fuel oil, petroleum coke, bitumen, lubricating oils, paraffins) - about 54 dollars per tonne, Sakovych reported, noting that the new duties on petroleum products will enter into force one month after the publication of the corresponding government resolution, most likely in the third ten-day period of June. \n \nUkraine does not share Russia's steps \n \nEarlier, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko called Russia's increase from 1 April of the export duty on oil by 23.6% to 102.6 dollars per tonne painful for Ukraine. \n \n"We, of course, cannot share such steps by Russia. The new authorities in Ukraine are striving for partner-like, understandable and balanced steps. Such a step (by Russia), in my opinion, is painful for Ukraine," the prime minister said. \n \nTymoshenko noted that the Cabinet of Ministers intends to meet with the heads of Ukrainian oil refineries in order to discuss what measures need to be taken to stabilize prices on the Ukrainian petroleum products market. \n \nHrytsenko predicts revenge \n \nAs a source present at a closed meeting involving Ukrainian Defence Minister Anatoliy Hrytsenko and leading Washington experts on the CIS told the Russian newspaper "Kommersant", Hrytsenko stated that "Russia will certainly raise energy prices for Ukraine," which will become the Kremlin's reaction to Viktor Yushchenko's talks in the United States.